Chances for Wanderers' fringe men in Huddersfield FA Cup clash

karlypants

Phil Parkinson is preparing to give some of his big-hitters a rest when the FA Cup comes to town tomorrow.

After taking nine points from a possible 12 in a hectic nine-day spell over Christmas, the Wanderers boss will look to rotate his squad for the visit of Premier League Huddersfield Town.

Gary Madine, Sammy Ameobi and Ben Alnwick are likely to be taken out of the firing line with chances offered to younger first teamers such as Jeff King and Jack Earing.

Adam Le Fondre, Jem Karacan, Derik Osede and Dorian Dervite could also come in for a rare home start but Parkinson says players who come into the side shoulder a responsibility, just as they did in the festive period.

“Being able to freshen the team up really helped us over Christmas and it will again,” he told The Bolton News. “The lads who came in after Boxing Day and then after Sheffield added a real strength of character and that’s the attitude we are looking for.

“There are obviously going to be changes in the team because of injuries we’ve picked up. Players like Gaz Madine have also been playing with little injuries so will probably need a breather. But equally there are players who are chomping at the bit to play so we’ll pick a team which is competitive and we want to keep our little run going.”

Injuries to Karl Henry (hamstring) and Darren Pratley (ankle) mean there will be enforced changes in midfield and Wanderers will be without the services of loanees Reece Burke, Josh Cullen and Adam Armstrong from the squad which faced Hull.

Everton have agreed for Antonee Robinson to continue his loan, which leaves him clear to continue at left-back as Andy Taylor is still struggling with a calf injury.

Parkinson says he will enjoy a break from the pressure of Championship football but feels there is a duty for his side to continue the run of form they have established over the last few weeks, especially in front of paying home fans at the Macron.

“Three out of four at this stage of the season is huge for us,” he said. “The Cardiff result was a big turning point and though we ran out of steam a little bit at Middlesbrough we regrouped and got that psychological edge when we won away from home. We’d done it quite often last year but it hadn’t happened in the Championship for a long time and we’d spoken to the lads about sustaining performances, concentration levels – we did it at Bramall Lane, we did it again against Hull.

“You don’t want to lose that. Whatever changes we make to the team in the cup, we want to be competitive and keep that run going.”